


Paths Will Cross

by lrhaboggle



Category: The Devil's Carnival (Movies)
Genre: 1920s, 1930s, Central Park, F/F, Fate, Foreshadowing, NYC, Paths, Romantic or platonic, Silly, Symbolism, Timeline Confusion, just go with it, pre-Alleluia, semi-philisophical, stupid
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-07
Updated: 2018-04-07
Packaged: 2019-04-19 16:44:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,237
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14241549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lrhaboggle/pseuds/lrhaboggle
Summary: Just a day before June and Cora are scheduled to move to Hollywood, they decide to take one last walkabout their beloved home of NYC and on the way, they meet three faces and paths will cross.





	Paths Will Cross

June Freeman and Cora Stein roamed the winding paths of NYC Central Park. It was a lovely summer day and the two girls were simply enjoying the beauty of nature. It was their last day here after all. Tomorrow, they'd be bus-bound to California. To Hollywood! After a few hours of milling about, the pair sat down on a bench to rest. They sat in peaceful silence until a crying newborn caught their attention.

"Awww, poor dear," Cora sighed as she watched the baby howl miserably.

"I feel bad for the mother," June joked, looking at the frazzled lady. The two grinned slightly, feeling bad about mocking the woman's distress.

The 2 fell silent again until June saw something. "Look!" Cora followed where June was pointing and saw a toy frog lying on the path.

"Do you think it belongs to the baby?" Cora voiced June's suspicion. June nodded before picking the thing up and brushing it off.

"Ma'am, is this yours?" June asked, walking over with the frog in her hand. The lady's eyes lit up when she saw the frog and June didn't need to hear her say yes to know it was true. The lady thanked them profusely as she gave the toy to her baby. Suffice to say, the squalling child calmed down pretty quickly after that.

"Yes, Tamara does love her little froggies," the relieved mother grinned down at her daughter who was busily gnawing on the frog's left leg.

"Tamara? That's a pretty name," June murmured, leaning closer to the baby. She had big green eyes and fuzzy brown hair.

"I like her dress too," Cora chimed in. It was a cute little outfit, a green silk dress with more frogs lining the hem.

"Thank you, I made it myself," the lady boasted.

"Really?" Cora and June both found a new respect for the lady and the dress. The lady nodded. The three continued to exchange pleasantries and, after a time, June began to make faces at the baby and it squealed up at her. Cora and the mother both laughed.

Finally, though, Tamara began to yawn.

"I think I'd better get her home," the woman said apologetically.

"We understand," Cora replied with a shrug, then she and June bade farewell to the woman and her daughter. The woman thanked them one last time for returning the toy frog, and then she vanished amongst the throng of other people, baby and frog both securely in their stroller.

"That was fun," June decided.

"You certainly were very cute with her," Cora agreed. June grinned embarrassedly, having gotten so lost in the moment that she didn't realize she was still very much in public. Cora laughed at her expression before taking her hand. June got the message and the duo continued on their way.

About 20 minutes after meeting Tamara, June and Cora ran into another little girl. This one, however, was several years older and a whole lot feistier. Currently, she was trying to get a group of boys to let her play with them.

"Come on, guys! It's no fair that I can't play!" she whined, stomping her little foot in a comical fashion.

"Sure it is! You're just a stupid little baby!" one of the boys spat.

"Yeah, why don't you go play with your dollies and leave us alone?" another asked.

"You'd be too weak to play anyway," a third stuck his tongue out at the little girl. A normal child probably would've run off crying, but not this one. Instead, she reared back and continued to yell.

"How do you know I'm weak? I bet I could beat all six of you without even trying! You meanie-heads!" she was a spitfire, to say the least.

June and Cora watched the exchange in amusement, pepping to jump in only if things got ugly. At last, however, one of the boys said something that got under June's skin just enough for her to interpose.

"You're only just a girl!" the boy had said. June's eyes flashed and she stepped forward.

"That's not very nice!" she said.

"But it's true!" the same boy dared argue. "We don't want her to play with us because she's weak. She'd ruin the game because she's a girl!"

"That's enough now!" June snapped again, raising herself up. She stood twice as tall as the boy. Before any waterworks could start, though, Cora joined in and gently pulled June away before addressing the boy.

"Let's make a deal," she said. "You let me and my friend and this little girl play and if we win, you have to let her pick the next game. Ok?"

"Ok!" the boy was heartened by Cora's softer tone and his arrogance returned to him. "Prepare to have your butts kicked!"

What ensued was a very strange game of capture the flag. On one side were six angry little boys. On the other was June, Cora, and the little spitfire girl from earlier. June and Cora felt very out of place, towering over everyone else by about three feet and then this little spitfire girl would run up to these boys who were half a head taller and, very bravely, tackle them head on.

"I'm not scared of you!" she screamed as she and the leader boy went down. "I've got my two big friends and they will kick your butts so bad!"

"Yeah, sure we will," Cora remarked uncomfortably as the girl and the boy began pulling hair.

"Come on! I'm gonna go get the flag!" June shouted over her, distracting the boy and girl and effectively ending their fight as they both ran after her. Cora rolled her eyes before running after them all.

At last, June and Cora and the little girl won. How they won was nothing short of a miracle, though. Midway through the game, the little girl had vanished and when Cora and June saw her again, she was wearing one of the boys' coats. He had left it under a tree because of how hot it was getting and now the little girl was wearing it.

"What are you doing?" Cora asked.

"Shhh!" the girl replied, then she pointed to where the boys were keeping their flag and then she pointed back to herself in the coat. She didn't need to say another word for June and Cora to understand and be very impressed. So while June and Cora created a dramatic diversion, pretending to try and get the flag from the left, the little girl snuck on by the enemy lines on the right, ignored because of her boyish disguise. The real boys didn't even realize that they had lost the game until after the girl had already stolen their flag and had time to put the boy's coat back under the tree.

"We won! We won! We won!" the girl jumped up and down, waving the flag like a trophy. June and Cora both high-fived her.

"Fine. What stupid game do you want to play next, then?" the leader of the boys asked with a pout. The girl tapped her chin dramatically and Cora and June stifled their laughter. This child couldn't have been more than eight and yet she was acting so much older. It was great.

"Actually, you know what? I don't think I want to play with you losers anymore!" she cried finally, then she threw the flag down at their feet, leaving everyone else, Cora and June included, totally speechless.

Slowly, then, the boys drifted away with sullen eyes, leaving the three women behind to laugh.

"Man, kid, you've certainly got gumption!" June remarked.

"Thank you!" the little girl grinned haughtily. This earned another laugh from the two older women.

"What's your name, anyway?" Cora asked. The girl opened her mouth but, right before she could reply, a woman older than any of them stepped forward. Clearly, it was the lady's mother. She cast June and Cora a suspicious look before gently leading her daughter away. Right before the girl had vanished entirely, though, they heard her voice split the summer air.

"My name is Ms. Kathleen Merrywood!" and that was the last either June or Cora heard from her. It would later occur to them that the child, as chatty as she had been, had never bothered to ask for their names.

"She was a wild one!" Cora observed, staring after the girl despite her being too far away to see now.

"I'll say!" June agreed. "Even I wasn't that hotheaded as a kid!"

"I find that hard to believe," Cora remarked.

"Oh, shut up!" June nudged the brunette playfully and they both laughed.

"Anyway, shall we keep going? I think I've had enough kids and babies for now," Cora said.

"Ok, I think I agree," June said, then she and Cora continued to a more secluded part of the park.

At last, the sun began to set and the pair planned to return to their small apartment for one last night. On the way out of the park though, they had one last adventure. A boy old enough to almost be a teenager yet young enough to still be very much a child had lost his parents and he was grieving heavily. Naturally, June and Cora helped him out.

"What are your names?" the boy asked through tears as June picked him up and coddled him.

"I'm June Freeman," said June. "And this is my friend, Cora Stein," she pointed to Cora.

"I'm John," the boy whimpered. "And I can't find my mommy and daddy."

"Don't worry, little one, we can help," Cora told him, caressing his short brown hair. "We'll take you to the police and they can find your parents."

"Ok," John agreed, then he nestled himself deeper into June's arms. June couldn't help but smile at him and then she turned to Cora who was watching the scene with an affectionate glow in her eyes.

Several mins later, the boy had begun to cry again and, as cruel as it sounded, it was starting to annoy June and Cora both.

"Oh stop crying!" June finally said, stopping and putting the boy down. Her abruptness startled both John and Cora into silence. "I know you miss your mom and dad but all this crying isn't going to help! It's only going to make it worse! So please, for the love of God, stop crying!" her words may have seemed harsh and even Cora began to glare at the blond but, somehow, it worked. That show of tough love actually worked John stopped crying. He was still sniffling and shaking but his sobs had quieted back down.

"I'm sorry," he whimpered. "I didn't mean to cry so much and I didn't mean to make you mad!"

"Oh, I'm sorry boy," June sighed, picking John up again. "I'm not mad at you, I just got tired of the crying."

"Me too," he agreed and both Cora and June laughed.

"Come on, then, we're taking you home," June whispered. She leaned in to kiss John but he had turned to wipe his nose on his sleeve at that exact moment so June missed his cheek and ended up kissing his ear instead. Oh well. That would work too.

The trio had just reached the police station, however, when they ran into John's family. It was a stroke of luck! And after much sobbing and hugging, everyone was finally able to compose themselves. John and his parents thanked Cora and June over and over again while Cora and June waved every bit of praise off. They were only trying to help. The pair even refused the money John's parents tried to pay them. Their son, in their eyes, was worth more than all the money in the world, but if these few dollars would show their gratitude, then they were going to give them.

"Don't be silly!" Cora insisted, handing the money back. "We were just trying to be good people. You keep it!"

"But you saved me!" John argued. "You must take it!"

"We'll be ok," Cora replied.

"Well, is there any way I can repay you?" the boy asked.

"Keep an eye on your family next time," June answered for Cora, but it was clear she was teasing.

At last, however, the girls did agree to allow John's parents to pay the bus fee home. Once the bus came around, John's parents paid the driver and the two girls thanked the parents before hopping on. They waved out of one of the windows until the family of three was no longer visible in the dying light of the day. Then, about half an hour later, June and Cora were lying together in bed.

"I wonder if our paths will cross again someday?" Cora murmured sleepily, thinking about the three children they had met that day.

"I don't know," June replied. Cora shrugged too and fell asleep not long after June switched off the lights. June took a bit longer to sleep, though, Cora's question circling her brain. For some reason, even though the odds of ever seeing those three kids again was low, June couldn't help but feel like they would. For some reason, she knew she'd see those kids again even if it took years and years.

"Our paths will cross again," she murmured. "Somehow, I just know it…" and then suddenly, she was asleep.

**Author's Note:**

> AN: This was just shameless foreshadowing because, no matter what you accept the timeline to be, this timeline would be near impossible.
> 
> The timeline I accept is as follows: TDC 2 flashbacks occur in the early 30s. TDC 2 present day and TDC 1 all take place in the early 60s (according to my mother, Merrywood's clothes look 60s). If we assume John, Merrywood and Tamara are 47, 26 and 24 (ages of actors during filming), they would've been born in 1913, 1934 and 1936 respectively. This means, John would've been 20, Merrywood -1 and Tamara -3 (if was assume this story and TDC 2 flashbacks were set in 1933 exactly). So yeah, the timeline is crap, I know. But I hope you at least liked the story and the idea behind it that they met whilst still alive because I'm a sucker for that kind of stuff, however unrealistic and overly poetic it is. (Just read my Wick and Shilo fic).


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